#HobbyGamesRecce I take a look at some of the historical #boardgames in my collection — games from history, not about it — and some related books. They’re common games available to everyone at some level, from across regions and cultures and time.

Trying to figure out what style of #chess pieces these are... Searching the internet hasn’t really helped.

CW: Nazis From a letter from Germany to friends in America, March 18, 1940: “It would be interesting to me to know if anyone over there has published an account of how things actually played out in Poland. I do not think, for example, that the Times or the Herald Tribune...” #WW2 #Poland 1/3

#HobbyGamesRecce In preparing for an upcoming game convention, I examine the risks I usually take, how I manage my anxiety beforehand, and a few strategies I rely on to better prepare for a positive outcome. #TTRPGs #Wargames

If #WW2 and #espionage interest you, don’t miss this amazing biography of determined and daring Polish resistance against Nazi oppression.

Finally got out to visit the Barnes & Noble in Fredericksburg, VA, this weekend; thrilled to see a host of new-to-me espionage books in the #WW2 section, along with some recently read favorites, engaging works by @soniapurnell.bsky.social and @claremulley.bsky.social. #AgentZo #WomanOfNoImportance

Dropped #DisneyPlus recently after re-assessing our media spending. Donated that money to local #PBS & #NPR stations; got access to #PBSPassport streaming service. Mysteries, news, kids shows, period dramas, documentaries...amazing shows. Find your PBS station here: www.pbs.org/stations/

#HobbyGamesRecce Playtesting the Battle of Great Bridge game I’m developing helped me make a few adjustments, but also confirmed that, as an abstraction, it simulates the factors central to the battle in a concise event demo experience for gaming newcomers. #History #GamesForLearning #Wargames

#HobbyGamesRecce Do we game more with friends or strangers? Which one do we prefer? Everyone has a different answer. It often depends on our opportunities for gaming, but also how well we navigate the challenges and joys each presents. #TTRPGs

I was waiting to see the sculpt of #AgentZo from @badsquiddogames.bsky.social and was not disappointed! KS backed! (Also helps that the Agent Zo bookmark was unlocked!) Looking to get a few more amazing #WW2 #Resistance women. Only a few more days to back this! www.kickstarter.com/projects/bad...

Glad to see one news outlet, even if it’s The Guardian, calling military deployment in Washington, DC, an occupation. Normalize calling this kind of “cooperation” collaboration. @mayorbowser.bsky.social is in a tough spot, but at this point we need resistance instead of collaboration.

#HobbyGamesRecce I’m culling some games from my collection. I weigh various personal factors whether I keep a game in my library or trade it in for credit...inevitably to buy more games.... I offer them here as possible considerations for others in this situation. #TTRPGs #Wargames #BoardGames

Today’s thrift-store find. I love artfully adorned, wooden, hinged cigar boxes. They’re great for storing #boardgame and #wargame bits. Better still this one from Powstanie Cigars emblazoned with the #Polish eagle and #Kotwica. Fortuitous if somber find on the eve of September 1. #Poland #WW2

If you see this, quote with a (tiny) tank. 1/300

Trying to hammer out a #HobbyGamesRecce piece for this week, but working on commentary about “Analytical Games & Inaction” with references to the current political situation in the US is just asking for trouble, and I can’t afford to do that.... Back to some more vapid game subject I suppose.

My awesome shieldmaiden deal from @badsquiddogames.bsky.social arrived Friday. Excellent service, just in time for #deminimis to end in the US. <groan> Hope shipping to America gets sorted out before the Women of #WW2 #Resistance KS Thank you for the fantastic minis to fuel my Viking #wargaming!

#HobbyGamesRecce I’m working on a bit of adventure design and writing for an upcoming #TTRPG convention game. Rather than fall back on the episodic #D6System scenario format, I’m trying an organizational and focus method, creating source material of relevant adventure elements based on...nouns.

Ordered a Shieldmaiden Warband Bundle from @badsquiddogames.bsky.social before #deminimis goes away in the US. Really shouldn’t have spent the money, but it’s a good opportunity. Bundle deal and 10% discount helped. Also figured the dollar’s not getting better against the pound anytime soon.

#HobbyGamesRecce I love exploring history through #wargames and #boardgames, but doing so in #TTRPGs often requires a balance between accuracy and cinematic elements that bring such games to life. The freedom to go anywhere and do anything remains essential for a satisfying #TTRPG experience.

Finally found time to read “Metaphor vs. Mechanics: Don’t Fight the Fusion” by @forbeck.com . Well worth the read for anyone interested in #TTRPGs and #BoardGames, even #Wargames.

#HobbyGamesRecce I consider my options determining rules for movement, close combat, ranged combat, and damage/morale as I design a basic #wargame for the American Revolutionary War Battle of Great Bridge. #History #GamesForLearning #Wargames

My western #history education never taught me about the #WW2 #WarsawUprising until I followed this podcast last year. Worth a listen for some horrifying if overlooked history. I also urge folks to follow @ww2girl1944.bsky.social as she profiles those who served and died in the uprising #OTD.

Knee surgery seemed to go well. Long recovery (and mobility issues) ahead. Got home this afternoon, managed to settle onto bed, then Watson, our elderly gray kitty, came to comfort me (or more likely enjoy my soft, warm lap). Thanks to those who sent kind messages and “likes” earlier.

#HobbyGamesRecce I got my start in #TTRPGs with Basic D&D right before high school...but a chance encounter with a free copy of Adventure Gaming magazine that first summer broadened my horizons with new vistas of possibilities. #DungeonsAndDragons #DandD #D&D #Dungeons&Dragons

I have surgery tomorrow to fix a torn quad in my knee. My already heightened anxieties about [insert everything here] are now off the chart, so staying calm takes lots of effort. Not looking forward to a long, limited mobility recovery. Thank you, social media friends, for pleasantly distracting me.

Going through files I found our wedding program with a benediction we were fond of (attrib. to Henri Frederic Amiel). Wish more people lived by these words: Life is short And we do not have much time To gladden the hearts Of those who travel with us. So be swift to love And make haste to be kind.

Played Juan Nacher’s Scope: U-boot tonight. Received it as a birthday gift. We played three games to try the basic rules. Captures the spirit of u-boot hunting. My son’s convoy escort sank my u-boot in two of three games. Looking forward to trying some of the advanced rules. #History #Wargames #WW2

#HobbyGamesRecce I reminisce about the time I met game designer Al Leonardi at my first game convention way back in 1985. The driving force behind the #AceOfAces and #LostWorlds “combat picture book games” passed away on July 12. #Wargames #GamesForLearning

Every Friday is movie night on our big screen. When somone has a birthday, they get to choose the movie, no debate. My choice? Last of the Mohicans in recognition of the discovery of a French & Indian War skirmish site near Fort Ligonier, PA, where Col. Washington stopped a friendly fire incident.

#HobbyGamesRecce A discovery in a used bookstore reminded me how some #wargame magazines used to include entire games...and how much I miss both those games and periodicals. They’re analog casualties in the digital Internet Age that has changed how we communicate about #boardgames and #TTRPGs, too.

A concise overview of an extraordinary #Polish spy’s #WW2 career; a tantalizing teaser of sorts for Mulley’s book, #AgentZo, which delves into Zo’s character, exploits, and legacy in greater depth.

#HobbyGamesRecce Summertime excursions inevitably end in the gift shop. But where are all the games to help us further explore these engaging sites? #HistoryGames #GamesForLearning #BoardGames

Noticed two spotted fawns munching on the foliage at the back of our yard this afternoon. Wish they and their mothers would stop eating flowers and vegetables in our gardens (chasing them off is how I injured my knee...). I am only capable of shooting them with my camera. #Virginia #Wildlife

Time to celebrate those with #July birthdays with this tired old schtick based on the Thor: Ragnarok movie.... Grandmaster: Whenever we get talking, Topaz, about July birthdays, what do I always say? “They are the...” and it begins with a “B.” Topaz: Trash. (continued...)

#HobbyGamesRecce In our summertime travels I discovered a new book offering more context and deeper research into the Battle of Ridgefield, an American War of Independence (#AWI) engagement in my hometown which I occasionally explore on the #wargaming table. #HistoryGames #GamesForLearning

A sentiment well worth remembering in these troubled times when the powerful few do as they please but the people suffer the results.

Always nice to see WEG's infamous Star Wars Style Guide mentioned, especially credited here with helping to set the current tone of #StarWars stories. I've occasionally mentioned the #D6SWRPG style guide over at my blog, but this entry probably offers the most behind-the-scenes info about it:

Noticed our #cats on the kitchen bench this #Caturday, Natasha napping, Hera intently watching something outside. She was “stalking” a skink enjoying the shade on the brick ledge outside. Cooler in the shade in today’s high temps, even under the gaze of such a fierce predator. #Virginia #Wildlife

Managed to hobble out to the front porch for some #flower photography despite my sprained knee. The Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) was blossoming splendidly, and I took some shots of other flowers before the deer inevitably get to them. #Virginia

#HobbyGamesRecce I discuss sources, map/board, and units/pieces as I develop my volunteer Battle of Great Bridge walk-up #wargame to commemorate the #CulpeperMinutemen. All with the goals I outlined in my last installment to make an accessible and brief game highlighting notable historical factors.

Happy #NoKings day. Hope your protests were peaceful and uneventful. Alas, here in #Culpeper, VA, not an hour away from #Charlottesville, some yahoo decided to drive his SUV recklessly into the crowd dispersing after the protest ended. No injuries reported. Thanks to the Culpeper PD for responding.

@markwarner.bsky.social @kaine.senate.gov Why adhere to "norms" and "procedures" when the current regime clearly has no respect for "norms" or even "the law." DO SOMETHING. SHUT IT DOWN. In voting to approve Noem, @kaine.senate.gov , you supported this Gestapo nightmare.

#HobbyGameRecce We don’t have a #D6 #SWRPG #TTRPG sourcebook for it, but I offer some guidance and inspiration for running a #resistance campaign in the Dawn of Rebellion era seen in the #StarWars #Andor series. A bit longer post than usual, but timely given the release of Andor Season 2.

Struggling with a #HobbyGamesRecce post, grappling with a second draft of my second lame idea...so no post this week. Hammering out something for next week and wondering: has anyone done a mock-up WEG D6 #StarWarsRPG cover for a #StarWars #Andor Sourcebook? @hishgraphics.bsky.social ?

Went to a regional toy soldier show this weekend, where I found the W. Britain WRNS figure I’d wanted since learning about #WATU. Not many female toy soldiers/collectible figures out there beyond historical personages, but the dealer had something he knew might interest me....

#HobbyGamesRecce I’m volunteering to develop and run a walk-up #wargame activity on the Battle of Great Bridge to commemorate the #CulpeperMinutemen. As I start my research and design process I note four guiding parameters to tailor the game to the event audience and focus on key historical factors.

#HobbyGamesRecce I muse about the resurgence of #StarWars media, notably such quality entertainment as the #Andor streaming series, and reflect how roleplaying games and solid storytelling engage and inspire us in the rich galaxy far, far away.... #StarWarsRPG #WestEndGames

#HobbyGamesRecce I offer a cursory overview and comparison of two capital-ship miniatures games: Star Trek: Attack Wing and Star Wars: Armada. Each looks great, with different but engaging systems that immerse gamers in their respective media universes. #StarTrek #StarWars #wargames #miniatures

Food for thought for @repvindman.bsky.social @kaine.senate.gov and @markwarner.bsky.social as they muster forces to defend the Library of Congress before it's too late. (I know, wishful thinking.) firstbranchforecast.substack.com/p/a-constitu...

As if I need more stress with Dogeboys trying to gut the LoC, I'm now in the ER as my son had an allergic reaction to some candy. He's doing okay, but had us worried for a bit. With everything going on I think it'll be a long, anxious night.